Friday Rap-Up: Scribble Jam, Run-DMC, Busta Rhymes, Jay-Z

Scribble Jam is an annual hip-hop festival hosted in Cincinnati, Ohio. So why are so many Colorado hip-hop artists excited about it? Well, on October 1 at the Fox Theatre in Boulder, a Scribble Jam preliminary event is being held to determine the best rapper and best producer to represent Colorado at the Scribble Jam Battle finals October 23-26. This is the same festival that Eminem, Rhymefest, MC Juice, Sage Francis, Eyedea and other notable MCs have participated in.

“The real hip-hop heads know the importance of ‘The Battle MC,’ and that it's a true showcase of skill and freestyle ability,” says Paul Padilla, aka Flawless, of local hip-hop crew On Point (www.myspace.com/onpointhiphop1), whose also promoting the Colorado preliminary event. “Scribble Jam gives the average dude who can spit fire, cut up some records, b-boy or make some fire beats, a chance to compete against the best and get their name out there.”

And apparently having your name floating around Colorado circles isn’t good enough. Local and established rappers and producers like Spoke-In-Wordz, MicJones, Yonnas (of The Pirate Signal), Mic Coats and even Hannibal Hef of 3OH!3, have signed up to represent Colorado in Ohio. Colorado rapper Black Pegasus, KS107.5’s DJ Chonz and yours truly, have all been tapped to decide who will rep the state next month and a chance to win more than $20,000 in cash and prizes.

“When it came to judging we chose people who have had a big impact on the hip-hop scene in Colorado,” explains Padilla. “They’ve developed a name for themselves and they also display different crafts of hip-hop: MC, DJ and journalist.”

The event will feature live emcee and producer battles plus performances from On Point, Purpose, Catch Lungs and C-Rayz Walz. Check out the commercial below:

Run-DMC nominated for Rock Hall induction

Earlier this week, Run-DMC was announced as being among the artists being considered for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame next year. The other nominees include Metallica, the Imperials, Jeff Beck, Bobby Womack, Chic, Wanda Jackson and the Stooges.

“Run-D.M.C. and Jam Master Jay being considered for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is an honor and a dream come true,” Joseph “Rev Run” Simmons told AllHipHop.com. “I pray that my DJ, Jam Master Jay, is resting in peace and smiling ear to ear. D.M.C. and Jay, job well done! This is exciting beyond belief.”

The induction is scheduled to take place in April at the museum in Cleveland, Ohio.

Busta Rhymes leaves Aftermath, joins Universal

Last week, Busta Rhymes left Aftermath Records and joined Motown/Universal, who is slated to release his new album. Rhymes says the relationship between him and label head, Dr. Dre, is cool but he's nonetheless happy to move on.

“The name of the album is called B.O.M.B.," he told New York Hot 97’s DJ Envy. "And B.O.M.B. is the acronym for ‘Back On My Bullsh*t.’ Yeah. I just want the world to know it’s official. New single from Busta Rhymes’ new album, B.O.M.B., is called ‘Arab Money.’ Let’s do it.”

Two singles, “Don’t Touch Me (Throw Da Water on Em)” and “We Made It” featuring Linkin Park, have been getting ridiculous airplay all summer.

Jay-Z launches new record label

While everyone was asleep, hip-hop mogul Jay-Z got up and launched StarRoc, a new label and publishing company with Norwegian songwriting production duo, Stargate. According to Billboard, the new venture will be under Jay-Z’s Roc Nation umbrella; a deal he has with Live Nation.

"The focus is to find new talent and develop artists through mutually beneficial global partnerships which include music distribution, publishing, touring and merchandising," the principals told Billboard. There’s no word on what the label’s first project will be.

Rap-A-Lot artist Z-Ro has respect all over his hometown of Houston, but that has yet to translate to nationwide fame. With this album, featuring appearances from Slim Thug, Mya, Paul Wall, and Lil Keke, he hopes to cross that threshold.

Dr. Dooom

Dr. Dooom 2

It’s been about eight years since we’ve had a new full length album from Kool Keith’s character Dr. Dooom. This release is produced entirely by Kutmasta Kurt. If you like Kool Keith and his brand of characters, this is another one to add to your collection.

Killah Priest & Chief Kamachi

Beautiful Minds

Both Killah Priest and Chief Kamachi have been putting down on the underground hip-hop scene for more than a decade; Killah with Wu-Tang and Chief with Army of the Pharaohs. The two MCs hooked up to collaborate on this project, which is basically hard, underground beats with rapid fire conscious flow. Any underground head would enjoy it.

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